Progress in semiconductor component technology has made it possible to miniaturize hearing aids ever more. However the problem that arises when this is done is that, as the housings become smaller, there is less and less space for controls. Remote controls are thus frequently used to operate hearing aids. The disadvantage of these however is that they always have to be carried as well by hearing aid wearers.
A mobile telephone with a sensor (proximity sensor) is known from U.S. 2002/0068537 A1. This sensor measures the distance between the telephone and the user's head. With the sensor output signal the amplification of the loudspeaker or of the microphone can be controlled as a function of this distance.
A hearing aid is known from U.S. Pat. No. 5,341,433 in which a pressure or position sensor designed as a film is present as a control element. The sensor is accommodated on the outside of the housing and reacts to even a light touch. The sensor switch has the disadvantage of requiring a comparatively large amount of space on the outside the housing and having to be touched directly to initiate a switching function.
A hearing device is known from DE 31 09 049 A1 featuring switches to execute operating functions. Furthermore magnetic switches are provided with the known hearing device which feature elements which can be influenced in their electric conductance by magnetic fields, e.g. reed contacts or magnetic field semiconductors. Thus a switching function can be initiated manually by moving a magnet. The magnetically-activatable switches can however also be used, on introduction of a magnetic field present outside the device, such as that of a telephone receiver, to switch on automatically an additional unit in the device such as a unit to improve the reception of a telephone call (induction coil).